Method of making buckets for water wheels



April 21, 1936. w. J. RHEINGANS ET AL 2,038,315

METHOD OF MAKING BUCKETS FOR WATER WHEELS Filed April 12, 1934 Patented Apr. 21, 1936 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

METHOD or MAKING BUoKE'rs FOR WATER WHEELS William J. Rheingans, Milwaukee, and Joseph J.

King, Wauwatosa, Wis., assignors to Allis-Chalmers Manufacturing Company,

Milwaukee,

12 Claims.

This invention relates to water wheels of the impulse type and has reference more particularly to improvements in the construction and manufacture of such wheels.

It is an object of the invention to provide an impulse wheel of simple, rigid and inexpensive construction.

A further object of the invention is to provide an impulse Wheel of a construction which lends itself to mass production at low costs.

A further object of the invention is to provide a simple, strong and efficient' bucket with fastening ears, which may be manufactured at low costs.

A still further object of the invention is to provide an improved bucket having an impact receiving portion and fastening ears, formed integrally from a sheet metal blank.

A still further object of the invention is to provide a. strong, simple and inexpensive connection between the sheet metal buckets and the bucket supporting body.

Another object of the invention is to provide an improved method of making water wheel buckets.

A further object of the invention is to provide a method of making water wheel buckets which lends itself to mass production at low costs.

These and other objects and advantages of the invention will be apparent from the following description. A clear conception of an embodiment of the invention and of the improved method of making the buckets, may be had by referring to the drawing accompanying and forming a part of the specification, in which like reference characters designate the same or similar parts in the several views.

Figure 1 is a side View of part of a water wheel embodying the invention.

Fig. 2 is a side view, on an enlarged scale, of one of the buckets shown in Fig. 1.

Fig. 3 is a front view of the bucket shown in Fig. 2.

Fig. 4 is an end view of the bucket shown in Fig. 2.

Figs. 5, 6 and 7 are perspective views illustrating certain steps in the manufacture of the bucket shown in Figs. 2 to 4.

The water wheel shown in Fig. 1 consists of a plane circular disk I which may be cut from plate stock, and a series of buckets 2 circularly arranged on the disk I, only three of the entire series of buckets being shown in Fig. l. The disk I has a number of slots 3 which are equally distributed. along the periphery of the disk, the

number of slots being equal to the number of buckets to be used on the wheel. At its center the disk I has a hole 4 for mounting purposes.

Each of the buckets 2 has an impact receiving portion 5 and a pair of fastening ears 6 and l, the portion 5 and ears 6 and i being formed of sheet metal, preferably as a single piece and from a blank of uniform thickness. The major part of the impact receiving portion 5 is shaped to form a pair of ellipsoidal cavities 8 and ii arranged side by side and having a common edge [0 in the plane of symmetry of the bucket. The front edge of the portion 5 is drawn in or recessed as indicated at H to provide the notch which has heretofore been used in ellipsoidal buckets. The rearward portions of the cavities merge with a plate portion l2 which is bounded by rear edges l3 and M of the portion 5, the edges l3 and I4 converging rearwardly from points l5 and I6 laterally of the cavities.

The fastening ears are ang-ularly disposed with respect tothe plane of plate portion l2 and each comprises substantially two portions disposed in different planes at right angles to the plane of plate portion I2. Thus, the fastening ear 6 comprises a first portion l1 merging with the plate portion l2 along edge 13, and extending in a plane through said edge at right angles to the plane of plate portion I2. The second portion of fastening ear 6 is indicated by l8 and extends in a plane at right angles to the plane of plate portion l2 and parallel to the plane of symmetry of the bucket, containing the edge III. The fastening car '5 comprises portions I 9 and 20 corresponding to the portions I1 and I8 of fastening ear 6, the portion l9 merging with plate portion l2 along edge M. The line indicated at 2| on ear 6 in Fig. 2 may be taken as the line of intersection between the plane of ear portion l1 and the plane of ear portion l8, and there is a similar line 2| on ear 1, which may be taken as the line of intersection between the plane of ear portion l9 and the plane of ear portion 20. It will be seen that the lines 2! on the finished bucket are perpendicular to the plane of plate portion l2 and that these lines intersect that plane at points adjacent to the focus 22 of the rearwardly converging rear edges l3. and M of portion '5.

The slots 3 in disk I are made wide enough and deep enough to receive the plate portions I 2 of the buckets. As more clearly shown in Fig. 2, the width of each slot 3 corresponds substantially to the thickness of the plate material forming the portion l2 behind the ellipsoidal cavities of the bucket portion 5, and the depth of the slot is such that the plate portion |2 may be moved into the slot for a substantial length. The portions l8 and 20 of the fastening ears 6 and 1 lie flat against the side surfaces of disk I and they are perforated as shown at 23 in Fig. 2 for the reception of rivets 24 shown in Fig. 3, the rivets passing through corresponding holes in the disk I and holding the fastening ears secured to the disk.

Referring now to Figs. 5, 6 and '7, these figures show different stages in the production of the bucket shown in Figs. 2 to 4. Fig. 5 shows the blank from which the bucket, including the impact receiving portion 5 and the fastening ears 6 and 'l, is to be formed. The blank has the form of a straight plate which may be out from sheet metal stock, and the plate has a straight rear edge 25 from which a slot 26 and side edges 21 and 28 extend forwardly. The slot has a width substantially equal to the thickness of the disk I and is equally spaced from the side edges 2! and 28. The portion of the blank forwardly of the slot gradually increases in width and has rounded front corners connected by a rearwardly curved front edge. The ellipsoidal cavities 8 and 9 of the bucket are formed by subjecting the blank to a die-forming operation which extrudes and. distorts the forward portion of the blank so as to bring it into final shape, preferably in such a manner that no subsequent trimming is required. The material of the blank may be steel and of substantial thickness, especially if the blank is to furnish a bucket of considerable size, and the blank may be heated so as to readily lend itself to the die-forming operation. The fastening ears 6 and I of the bucket are formed from portions of the blank laterally of the slot 26 and extending, to some extent, forwardly from the inner end of the slot. The whole fastening ear 6 is formed from the portion of the blank lying rearwardly of the dash-dotted line l3 inFig. 5 between the side edge 21 and the slot 26, and the whole fastening ear I is formed from the portion of the blank lying rearwardly of the dashdotted line M in Fig. 5 between the side edge 28 and the slot 26. The lines l3 and I4 shown in Fig. 5 diverge forwardly from the inner end of slot 26 towards points I5 and I6 on the edges 21 and 28 of the blank, the points l5 and I6 in Fig. 5 being identical with the points l5 and I6 in Fig. 3. EX- tending at right angles to the dash-dotted line l3 on the surface of the blank shown in Fig. 5 is another dash-dotted line indicated by 2 I which extends between the inner end of the slot 26 and a point on the edge 21 rearwardly of the inner slot end. The right angle relation between the lines l3 and 2| in Fig. 5 appears in perspective and the lines, therefore, do not intersect each other at right angles on the paper. The dashdotted line 2| in Fig. 5 appears as the full line 2| shown in Fig. 2. It will be seen that the portion of the blank rearwardly of the dash-dotted line 2| and between slot 26 and side edge 2'! is in form identical with the portion |8 of the fastening ear 6 shown in Fig. 2, and that the portion of the blank bounded by the dash-dotted lines l3 and 2| and the side edge 21 in Fig. 5 is identical in form with the portion ll of the fastening ear 6 shown in Fig. 2. The mentioned portions of the blank have therefore been indicated by the reference numerals I6 and H. In order to obtain the final disposition of the fastening ear 6 shown in Figs. 2 to 4, it is only necessary to bring the portions I1 and I8 of the blank into proper angular relations with respect to the plane of the blank, and this may be accomplished by two simple bending operations which have been illustrated in Figs. 6 and 7. The first bending operation consists in bending the portion l8 of the blank about the dash-dotted line 2 in Fig. 5 upwardly with respect to the plane of the blank as shown in Fig. 6, the line 2| being shown in full in this figure. The portion I8 is brought by this bending operation into a plane inclined with respect to the plane of the blank, the angle of inclination being the same as the angle which the plane of ear portion |8 forms with the plane of ear portion l! in the finished bucket. The second bending operation consists in bending the portion l'! of the blank about the dash-dotted line IS in Fig. 5 downwardly with respect to the plane of the blank, the angular relation of the portion l8 with respect to the portion ll remaining undisturbed during this second bending operation. The result of the second bending operation is illustrated in Fig. '7 which shows, as will be seen, the final disposition of the fastening ear 6. That is, the blank has an edge l3 where the dash-dotted line I3 was before the second bending operation, and the line 2| which formerly coincided with the plane of the blank appears in Fig. 7 as line 2| perpendicular to the plane of the blank. The final disposition of the fastening ear 1 is obtained in an analogous manner, that is, by subjecting the portion of the blank rearwardly of the line M in Fig. 5 and between the slot 26 and the side edge 28 to the same bending operations which have been described in connection with the fastening ear 6. Like the die-forming operation referred to hereinbefore the bending operations may require heating of the blank. The holes 23 in the fastening ears may be provided in any suitable manner, but they are preferably drilled when the bucket is in position on the disk I so that the holes in the ears and the corresponding holes in the disk are drilled at the same time.

In the bucket shown in Figs. 2 to 4 the impact receiving surfaces of the cavities 8 and 9 correspond to surface portions of the blank at one side of the latter while the surfaces of the ear portions I8 and 28 in contact with the side surfaces of the disk correspond to surface portions at the opposite side of the blank. This does not have to. be so, and, if desired, the depressions in the blank, which form the cavities, could be made in the opposite direction to that shown, in which case the impact receiving surfaces of the cavities and the surfaces of the ear portions l8 and 20 in contact with the side surfaces of the disk would correspond to surface portions at the same side of the blank. In other words, the extruding and bending operations could be performed in such a manner that portions of the blank would be elevated thereby with respect to the plane of the blank in generally opposite directions.

It should be understood that it is not intended to limit the invention to the exact details of construction and procedure herein shown and described, for various modifications within the scope of the claims may occur to persons skilled in the art.

We claim:

1. The method of making buckets for water wheels, which includes providing a sheet metal blank having a rear edge, a slot and lateral edges extending forwardly from said rear edge, bending said blank on lines diverging from said slot towards points onsaid lateral edges forwardly of the forward end of said slot, and bending portions of said blank laterally of said slot on lines diverging from said slot towards points on said lateral edges rearwardly of said forward slot end.

2. The method of making buckets for water wheels, which includes providing a sheet metal blank having a rear edge, a slot and lateral edges extending forwardly from said rear edge, bending said blank on lines diverging from the forward end of said slot towards points on said lateral edges forwardly of said forward slot end, and bending portions of said blank laterally of said slot on lines diverging from said forward slot end towards points on said lateral edges rearwardly of said forward slot end.

3. The method of making buckets for water wheels, which includes providing a sheet metal blank having a rear edge, a slot and lateral edges extending forwardly from said rear edge, forming impact receiving cavities on said blank forwardly of the forward end of said slot, bending said blank on lines diverging from said for-. ward slot end towards points laterally of said cavities, and bending portions of said blank laterally of said slot on lines diverging from said forward slot end towards points on said lateral edges rearwardly of said forward slot end.

4. The method of making buckets for water wheels, which comprises providing a sheet metal blank having a rear edge, a slot and. lateral edges extending forwardly from said rear edge, forming impact receiving cavities on said blank forwardly of the forward end of said slot, bending said blank on lines diverging from said slot towards points on said lateral edges forwardly of said forward slot end, bending portions of said blank laterally of said slot on lines diverging from said slot towards points on said lateral edges rearwardly of said forward slot end, and perforating said last mentioned portions of the blank for the reception of fastening means.

5. The method of making buckets for water wheels, which comprises providing a sheet metal blank having rear, side and front edges and a slot extending forwardly from said rear edge, extruding portions of said blank towards one side of its plane to form a pair of impact receiving cavities thereon having a common edge between said side edges and forwardly of said slot, and bending rearward portions of said blank at opposite sides of a central plane extending at right angles to the plane of said blank through said common edge, into angular relationship with the plane of said blank.

6. The method of making buckets for water wheels, which comprises providing a sheet metal blank having rear, side and front edges and a slot extending forwardly from said rear edge, extruding portions of said blank towards one side of its plane to form a pair of impact receiving cavities thereon having a common edge between Said side edges and forwardly of said slot, and. bending rearward portions of said blank at opposite sides of a central plane extending at right angles to the plane of said blank through said common edge, into angular relationship with the plane of said blank at the side of the latter towards which said cavities are extruded.

7. The method of making buckets for water Wheels, which comprises providing a sheet metal blank having rear, side and front edges and a slot extending forwardly from said rear edge, extruding portions of said blank towards one side of its plane to form a pair of impact receiving cavities thereon having a common edge between said side edges and forwardly of said slot, and bending rearward portions of said blank at opposite sides of a central plane extending at right angles to the plane of said blank through said common edge, into parallel relationship with said central plane.

8. The method of making buckets for water wheels, which comprises providing a sheet metal blank having rear, side and front edges and a slot extending forwardly from said rear edge, extruding portions of said blank towards one side of its plane to form a pair of impact receiving cavities thereon having a common edge between said side edges and forwardly of said slot, and deforming rearward portions of said blank at opposite sides of a central plane extending at right angles to the plane of said blank through said common edge, by bending each rearward portion in one direction about a first line extending between said slot and the edge of the blank at the respective side of said central plane, and by bending each rearward portion in an opposite direction on a second line extending in the plane of the blank and diverging from said central plane in a forward direction.

9. The method as set forth in claim 8, wherein portions of said blank adjacent to said second lines are placed, by said bending operations about said second lines, at the side of the plane of the blank towards which said cavities are extruded.

10. The method as set forth in claim 8, wherein portions of said blank adjacent to said slot are placed, by said bending operations about said first and second lines into parallel relationship with said central plane.

11. The method as set forth in claim 8, wherein portions of said blank adjacent to said second lines are placed, by said bending operations about said second lines, into right angle relationship with the plane of said blank.

12. The method as set forth in claim 8, wherein portions of said blank adjacent to said second lines are placed, by said bending operations about said second lines, into right angle relationship with the plane of said blank, and wherein portions of said blank adjacent to said slot are placed, by said bending operations about said first and second lines into parallel relationship with said central plane.

WILLIAM J. RHEINGANS. JOSEPH J. RING. 

